Mining machine having cutting head with rotated and orbited cutters



Feb. 21, 1967 A. J. GALIS ETAL MINING MACHINE HAVING CUTTING HEAD WITH 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 mm? 39% ii 2 sxmp a v5 r Mm T I M .w a J ROTATED AND ORBITED CUTTERS Filed July 16. 1963 MINING MACHINE I-IAV EAD WITH RQTATED AND ED CUTTERS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 16, 1965 Feb. 21, 1967 J GAUS E 3,305,271

ING CUTTING H ORBIT STE/ H6 AIMULDOV N.

Feb. 21, 1967 A. J. GALIS ETAL 3,305,271

MINING MACHINE HAVING CUTTING HEAD WITH ROTATE D AND ORBI'I'ED CUTTERS Filed July 16, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Feb. 21, 1967 A. J. GALIS ETAL MINING MACHINE HAVING CUTTING HEAD WITH ROTATED AND ORBITED CUTTERS Filed July 16, 1963 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 IN [/5 N TOPS 21. EX J. 667416, STEPH1V 6'. M04 00 V4/V.

( 7 7 TUBA/E Y United States Patent G 3,305,271 MINING MACHINE HAVING CUTTING HEAD WITH ROTATED AND ORBITED CUTTERS Alex .I. Galis and Stephen A. Muldoven, Morgantown,

W. Va., assignors, by mesne assignments, to Galis Manufactnring Company, Fairmont, W. Va., a corporation of West Virginia Filed July 16, 1963, Ser. No. 295,405 6 Claims. (Cl. 299-57) This invention relates to a mining machine and more particularly to a mining machine having an improved form of cutter or disintegrating head.

Various forms of mining machines have been suggested in the past to dislodge material from the face. These mining machines employ various forms of cutter heads, such as chain type kerf cutters, chain type ripper devices, borers, angers, and full scroll type cutters to dislodge the material.

The chain type kerf cutter machine is employed in conventional mining to cut a peripheral kerf in the face and the material is thereafter dislodged by drilling and shooting. The other types of cutter heads are used in what is generally considered continuous mining in that they continuously dislodge the material from the face and advance into the face as the material is dislodged.

The chain type kerf cutter has certain disadvantages in that the cutting operation is confined to a single plane and kerfs of other than rectangular dimensions can not be cut with the conventional type kerf cutter. The known types of continuous miners depend primarily on massive heavy structural members to exert excessive feed pressures on the cutting means to dislodge or mine the material. These massive structures result in mining machines that are cumbersome, expensive to manufacture and maintain, and unwieldy to transport in the mine passageways.

We have discovered a new and improved cutter head that is versatile in that it can be employed as the cutter means for a kerf cutting machine or can be employed as a cutter head for a continuous miner. Our improved cutter head utilizes the cutting action of the bits to dislodge the material and does not require excessive feed pressures or massive structures to dislodge the material.

Briefly, our invention includes a cutter head that has a longitudinally extending support member which has secured thereto in substantial alignment a plurality of radially spaced cutter shafts. The cutter shafts each have a plurality of radially extending cutter bits. A separate drive means is provided to rotate the plurality of cutter shafts at a substantially high speed and a separate drive means is provided to independently rotate the supporting member at a speed which may be less than the rotational speed of the cutter shafts. The cutter shafts, as they rotate about their axes, revolve about the axis of the support member. Both the support member and the cutter shafts have cutting means secured to their front ends so that the entire cutter head is ar ranged to penetrate the working face and dislodge material therefrom. As the cutter head moves laterally relative to the face, the cutter bit rotating with the respective cutter shafts dislodges the material from the exposed surface. The lateral movement of the cutter head and the rotation of the support member move the cutter shafts through successive arcuate paths to efliciently dislodge the material from the exposed surface by the action of the rapidly rotating cutter bits secured to each of the cutter shafts. With our improved cutter head it is now possible to rapidly dislodge the material from the exposed surface.

Accordingly, the principal object of this invention is to provide an improved cutter head that includes a pluice rality of rotatably driven spaced cutter shafts secured to a rotatable support member.

Another object of this invention is to provide a cutter head having axially aligned cutter shafts positioned on a support member with means to separately rotate the cutter shafts and the support member.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will be more completely described and disclosed in the following specification, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.

FIGURE 1 is a view in elevation of a kerf cutting machine having our improved cutter head.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged view of the cutter head illustrated in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a view in section illustrating the drivearrangement for the rotatable cutter shafts.

FIGURE 4 is a view in section taken along the line 4-4 in FIGURE 3 illustrating the mechanism for rotating the cutter shafts relative to the supporting member.

FIGURE 5 is a view in front elevation of our improved cutter head illustrating the structure for supporting the cutter shafts from the supporting member.

FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic view of face of material illustrating a typical kerf that may be cut by the kerf cutting machine illustrated in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged view in side elevation of one of the cutter heads illustrated in FIGURE 8.

FIGURE 8 is a view in side elevation of a continuous mining machine having a pair of our improved cutter heads.

FIGURE 9 is a schematic view of the material face illustrating the manner in which the material is continuously removed therefrom by the continuous mining machine illustrated in FIGURE 7.

Referring to the drawings and more particularly to FIGURES 1-5 there is illustrated our improved cutter head generally designated by the numeral 10 advancing into the face designated F. The cutter head is mounted on a platform 12 so that the cutter head It} is maintained in a substantially horizontal position and perpendicular to the face. The platform 12 is suitably secured at its rear end to one end of a boom member 14 by means of a suitable connection 16. The boom 14 is connected to and extends from a self-propelled carriage 18 which is partially illustrated in FIGURE 1. The self-propelled carriage 18 is arranged to exert a forward force on the cutter head 10 as the cutter head 10 advances into the face. The boom 14 and connection 16 are arranged to move the cutter head 10 into various positions to cut an annular kerf K in the face, as is illustrated in FIGURE 6. The boom member 14 has a roll-over device which positions the cutter head 10 adjacent the passageway floor, as is illustrated in dash-dot lines in FIGURE 1. The self-propelled carriage 18 includes suitable power means to both advance the cutter head 10 into the face and provide power for the cutter head drive means, later described.

The cutter head 10 has a tubular central supporting member 20 supported adjacent its rear edge by a bearing block type support 22. The tubular supporting member 20 is rotatably supported in the bearing block 22 and has an end portion 24 extending rearwardly therefrom. The tubular supporting member end portion 24 has an external annular sprocket 26 secured thereto and rotatable therewith. A drive motor 28 is supported on the bearing block 22 and is connected through a sprocket 30 and chain 32 to the sprocket 26 secured to the tubular support member 20. With this ararngement the motor 28- through the sprocket and chain arrangement rotates the supporting member 20 in a preselected direction at a preselected speed. Although an electric motor 28 and a chain and sprocket arrangement are illustrated as the rotating means for the tubular support member 20, it should be understood that other suitable means to rotate the tubular member may be provided.

The tubular support member 20 has a plurality of elongated axial slotted portions 34 which serve as openings through which dislodged material may pass into the internal portion of the tubular support 20. The elongated slotted portions 34 may be randomly arranged in the tubular support member 20 to provide a sufficient number of openings for the flow of dislodged material from the external surface of the support 20 therethrough.

As is clearly illustrated in FIGURE 3, there is positioned within the tubular support member 20 a shaft 36 having an external scroll 38 positioned thereon. The shaft 36 extends beyond the tubular shaft rear end portion 24, as is illustrated in FIGURE 1, and has an end portion 40 which is suitably connected to a drive motor 42 so that the shaft 36 and scroll 38 are rotatable relative to the tubular supporting member 20. The scroll 38 is arranged to convey the dislodged material entering through the supporting shaft slotted portions 34 toward the rear of the cutter head 10. The separate drive means 42 may vary the speed of rotation of the shaft 36 to continuously remove the mined material from within the tubular supporting member 2-0. Between the tubular supporting member end portion 24 and the scroll end portion 40 there is a shroud 44 positioned around the shaft 36. The shroud is connected to a flexible conduit 46. A vacuum may .be applied to the conduit 46 to assist in collecting the dislodged material discharged by the scroll 38 adjacent the shaft end portion 40 and convey the dislodged material to a suitable receiver, such as a cyclone separator (not shown).

Secured to the external portion of the tubular supporting member 20 are a plurality of cutter shaft supports 48. FIGURE 5 illustrates the cutter shaft support member 48 adjacent the front end of the tubular shaft 20. The support 48 includes a plurality of radially extending bearing supports 50 which have a central aperture 52. The supports 50 are rigidly secured to the external surface of the tubular supporting member 20 by means of welding or the like. In FIGURE 5 there are four bearing supports 50 illustrated as being secured to the tubular sup-port member 20 and extending radially therefrom. It should be understood, however, that a greater or lesser number of supports 5-0 may be positioned on the external surface of tubular member 20, as will later be discussed.

The cutter shaft support members 48 are secured to the tubular support member 20 in axial spaced relation to each other as is necessary to adequately support the cutter shafts, later described. The respective bearing supports 50 of each support 48 are so arranged on the external surface of tubular member 20 that the apertures 52 are aligned for the passage of the cutter shafts therethrough. Suitable bearing means are positioned within the apertures 52 and are arranged to receive the cutter shafts generally designated by the numeral 54.

Extending through the aligned apertures 52 in the members 50 are cutter shafts 54 arranged parallel to the tubular supporting member 20. As illustrated in FIGURES 1-5 there are four cutter shafts supported by the tubular supporting member 20 in radial spaced relation to the tubular supporting member 20 and in spaced relation to each other. The cutter shafts 54 are arranged equidistant from the axis of the tubular support 20 and the axes of the cutter shafts 54 are arranged in a circle having a common center with the tubular shaft 20. The cutter shafts 54 are substantially similar in construction and the details of only one cutter shaft will be described.

The cutter shaft 54 has scroll segments 56 secured thereto and rotatable therewith. The scroll segments 56 are arranged to convey the mined or disintegrated material toward the rear end of the cutting machine 10. There are a plurality of rectangular apertures 58 in the cutter shaft 54 extending transversely therethrough. All the rectangular apertures are arranged in alternate perpendicular arrangement to each other. Suitable threaded apertures 60 intersect the rectangular apertures 58. A plurality of cutter bits 62 are positioned in the rectangular apertures 58 and have pointed cutting surfaces 64 on both ends so that on rotation of the cutter shaft 54 both surfaces 64 of cutters 62 serve as a cutting means to dislodge the material being mined. Suitable carbide tips can be provided for the cutting surfaces 64. Set screws 66 secure the cutters 62 in the rectangular apertures 58. The cutters 62 are so dimensioned that the cutting surfaces 64 extend radially beyond the circumference of the scroll segments 56.

The cutter shafts 54 have a front end portion 68 which is pointed and has cutter means 70 secured thereto. Similarly, the tubular support member 20 has a plurality of radially extending cutters 72 and the shaft 36 positioned within the tubular support 20 has a pointed end portion 74 with cutters 76 secured thereto. Thus, the front ends of the tubular support member 20, the shaft 36 positioned therein, and the cutter shafts 54 all have cutter means secured thereto so that all of these members serve as a disintegrating or cutting device as the cutter head 10 is advanced into the face F.

Each of the cutter shafts have end portions 78 with a spur gear 80 nonrotatably secured thereto by means of a spline 82 (see FIGURES 3 and 4). The cutter head 10 has a housing generally designated by the numeral 84 which encloses the cutter shaft end portions 78 and the spur gear 80. The housing 84 has a central aperture 86 through which the tubular supporting member 20 extends. Suitable annular bearing means 88 positioned in aperture 86 permits rotation of the housing 84 relative to tubular shaft 20. An annular washer type bearing 90 is positioned around the tubular supporting member 20 in abutting relation with the end of housing 84. An annular collar 92 is positioned on the tubular supporting member 20 and suitably secured thereto for rotation therewith. Secured to the tubular supporting member 20 in front of housing 84 is a support member 94 having a central bore 96 and a plurality of radial bores 98. The tubular support member 20 extends through the central bore 96 and is secured to the member 94 by means of welds 100. Elongated bearings 102 are positioned in the radially spaced bores 98 and the cutter shafts 54 extend therethrough. The bearings 102 have flanged end portions 104 which serve as spacers for the spur gears 80 and permit rotation of spur gears 80 and cutter shafts 54 relative to support member 94.

The housing 84 has an annular internal toothed gear 106 that meshes with the spur gears 80 secured to the cutter shafts 54 so that rotation of the annular gear 106 drives the spur gears 80 and rotates the cutter shafts 54. Secured to the external surface of housing 84 is an externally toothed gear 108. A drive gear meshes with external gear 108 (FIGURE 1) and is driven by a separate motor 112. With this arrangement the housing 84 is freely rotatable relative to the tubular supporting member 20 extending axially therethrough. The support member 94 is secured to and rotatable with the tubular support member 20 so that when the tubular member 20 rotates, all the cutter shafts as a unit revolve with the tubular support member 20 in a circular path having a common center with the tubular support member 20, that is, the cutter shafts orbit in a circular path about the longitudinal axis of the tubular support member 20. The cutter shafts 54, however, are separately driven for rotation about their axes by means of the gears 110, 108, 106 and 80. Thus, motor 112 through gears 110 and 108 rotates the gear housing 84 relative to the tubular supporting member 20. This rotation is transmitted through the internal toothed gear 106 to the spur gears 80 so that each cutter shaft 54 rotates about its longitudinal axis. This rotation revolves the cutting surfaces 64 about the respective cutter shafts 54 to remove or dislodge material.

In summary, motor 28 rotates tubular supporting member 20 about its axis. Because of the support member 94 and the support members 48, the cutter shafts S4 revolve with the tubular support member 20 and orbit in a circular path. The motor 112 rotates, through the gearing arrangement previously described, each of the cutter shafts. The rotation of each of the cutter shafts is, therefore, independent of the rotation of the tubular support member 20. The motor 42 independently drives shaft 36 positioned within the tubular support member 20. The rotation of the respective cutter shafts through the separate drive is at a sufiiciently high speed to obtain eficient cutting by the individual cutters 62 secured to the respective cutter shafts 54. The rotation of the support member 20 and the revolving of the respective cutter shafts 54 about the axis of the tubular support member 20 provides a means for continuously changing the relative position of the respective cutter shafts as the cutter head traverses across the face.

It should be understood that drive means for the cutter shafts other than the specific gearing arrangement heretofore described can be employed to provide for axial rotation of each of the cutter shafts 54.

Operation Our improved cutter head as illustrated in FIGURE 1 may be employed as a kerf cutting machine to cut an annular kerf in the face to provide an annular opening around a block of material that can subsequently be dislodged by conventional drilling and shooting. Our improved cutter head cuts the kerf in the face as follows. The self-propelled carriage 18 is positioned substantially in the center of the passageway and the boom 14 is adjusted to position the cutter head as is illustrated in dashdot lines in FIGURE 1. The motors or drive means 112, 28 and 42 are energized so that the cutter shafts 54 are rotating at a high speed about their respective axes. In addition, the tubular support member 20 is rotating about its axis and the cutter shafts are revolving about the axis of the tubular support member 20. The shaft 36 positioned within the tubular support member 20 is also rotating at a high rate of speed. The self-propelled carriage advances until the front end of the cutter head 20 penetrates the face adjacent the lower left-hand corner of the passageway. As previously described, the shaft 36 has cutter members 76 secured to its front end portion. The tubular support member 20 has cutters 72 secured to its annular front end portion and the respective cutter shafts 54 have cutters secured to their front end portion. These respective cutters dislodge the material and the scrolls 56 and 38 convey the dislodged material toward the rear end of the cutter head as the self-propelled carriage advances the cutter head 10 into the mine face. After the cutter head has penetrated the face a pre-selected distance, the boom 14 is actuated to move the cutter head in a substantially vertical direction adjacent the left side of the passageway. During this vertical cut the cutter bits 62 on the respective shafts dislodge the material which is conveyed toward the rear of the machine by the scrolls 56 and 38.

It is highly desirable under certain conditions to provide an arched roof in the mine passageway. The boom 14 is actuated to move the cutter head 10 in a suitable direction to form the curved arch 114 illustrated in FIG- URE 6. After the curved arch 114 is formed in the face, the cutter head 10 is then directed transversely across the face adjacent the roof until it approaches the opposite vertical wall. The boom 14 is then actuated to form a second arch 116 to provide a structural support for the roof of the passageway. The boom 14 is then actuated to move the cutter head downwardly toward the passageway floor. After the cutter head 10 has cut the vertical portion of the kerf adjacent the right wall of the passageway, the boom 14 is actuated to move the cutter head laterally across the face adjacent the passageway floor. During the entire kerf cutting operation the cutter 6. head 10 is maintained in a substantially horizontal plane, as is illustrated in FIGURE 1.

With our improved cutter head it is now possible to cut a complete annular kerf, that is the side cuts, 'the top out and the bottom cut, without removing the kerf cutter from the face after each cut. With our cutter head it is possible to turn corners and smoothly transition from a vertical cut to a horizontal cut without removing the kerf cutter from the face and subsequently sumping in for the second cut in the other plane. It is also possible by utilizing our improved cutter head 10 to form an arched roof or a roof having arched portions adjacent the side walls as illustrated in FIGURE 6 to provide support for the mine roof. This, to the best of our knowledge, has not been possible with known kerf cutters.

Our improved cutter head provides a means to utilize with maxim-um efficiency the cutting surfaces of the bits 62 secured to the cutter shafts. The cutter shafts are rotating about their respective axes and all of the cutter shafts are revolving about the tubular supporting member. With this arrangement, as the cutter head is moving laterally the rotation of the supporting member 20 and the revolution of the cutter shafts 54 about the axis of the tubular supporting member 20 advances the respective cutter shafts 54 into the unmined material in an elongated arcuate noncircular path. As the respective cutter shafts are advancing in this arcuate path into the unmined material, the rotation of the respective cutter shaft at a high rate of speed subjects the exposed surface of the unmined material to the cutting surfaces of the cutter bits. The exposed surface of the mined material is therefore subjected to the cutting action of the bits as they rotate with the cutter shafts and the material is rapidly dislodged from the exposed surface during the lateral movement of the cutter head 10. Our improved cutter head rapidly dislodges unmined material and increases the efficiency of the over-all mining operation.

Our improved cutter head may also be utilized as a disintegrating or cutter head for a continuous mining machine. In FIGURE 8 there is illustrated a continuous mining machine having another form of our cutter head. The mining machine has a pair of cutter heads generally designated by the numerals 200 and 202 which are sup ported by platforms 204 and 205. The platforms 204 and 206 are connected to a self-propelled carriage 208 by means of separate booms 210 and 212. The cutter heads 200 and 202 are of substantially the same construction and one of the cutter heads is illustrated in greater detail in FIGURE 7. The cutter head 200 has an axial supporting shaft 214 that is secured in a bearing block 216 in much the same manner as the cutter head 10 illustrated in FIGURES 1 and 2. The shaft 214 extends through the bearing block 216 and has an end portion 218 drivingly connected to a motor 220. Thus, the motor 220 is arranged to axially rotate the supporting shaft 214. Secured to the supporting shaft 214 is a scroll member 222 which has a plurality of apertures 224 radially spaced from the axis of the supporting shaft 214. The apertures 224 are axially aligned and have suitable bearings 226 positioned therein. Extending through the aligned apertures 224 are cutter shafts 228 which have cutter bits 230 extending therethrough in much the same manner as the cutter bits 62 on shafts 54 illustrated in FIGURES l and 2. The cutter shafts 228 are rotatable relative to the supporting shaft 214 and are driven by motor 232 and gears 234 and 236 in the same manner as that illustrated in FIGURES 3 and 4. Thus, the motor 220 rotates the shaft 214 about its axis and revolves the cutter shafts 228 about the axis of the supporting shaft 214. The motor 232 through gears 234 and 236 rotates the respective cutter shafts 228 about their respective axes. The front end of the scroll 222 has cutter bits 238 secured thereto and the supporting shaft 214 has pointed cutter means 240 secured to the front end portion. Similarly the cutter shafts 228 have cutter means 242 secured to their respective front end portions. The cutters 230 are dimensioned so that they extend beyond the radial dimension of the scroll so that the scroll, as the cutter head 200 moves laterally, functions primarily as a means to convey the dislodged material toward the rear portion of the mining machine.

The cutter head 200 operates in a manner similar to the cutter head previously described in that the cutter heads 200 and 202 are arranged to advance into the mine face by advancing the self-propelled carriage 208 and actuating the motors 220 and 232 to rotate both the supporting shaft 214 and the cutter shafts 228. The mining machine illustrated in FIGURES 7 and S dislodges material from the face by positioning the mobile carriage 208 in the center of the passageway and adjusting the booms 210 and 212 to position the cutter head 200 adjacent the roof as illustrated by the letter A in FIGURE 9 and positioning cutter head 202 adjacent the floor as illustrated by the letter B in FIGURE 9. Motors 232 and 220 are actuated to activate the cutters 238, 242 and 240 on the front end of the respective cutter heads. The mobile carriage 208 is then advanced so that the cutter heads penetrate the face a pre-selected distance in the positions illustrated in FIGURE 9. After the cutter heads 200 and 202 have reached the pre-selected depth in the face, the booms 210 and 212 are actuated to move cutter 200 laterally as indicated by the arrow in FIGURE 9 and to move the cutter head 202 also laterally but in the opposite direc tion. The cutter heads 200 and 202 may be suitably arranged in vertical planes to pass closely adjacent to each other in their lateral movement relative to the face or, where desirable, the cutter heads 200 and 202 may be spaced adjacent the floor and roof to remove the entire vein of material. If the vein is thicker than the combined diameters of the cutter heads 200 and 202, the intermediate layer may be removed by a coordinated vertical movement of both the cutter heads as they are advanced towards each other.

The material dislodged by the mining machine illustrated in FIGURES 7 and 8 is removed from the face by suitable gathering and conveying means which are wellknown in the art and are not illustrated in FIGURES 7 and 8.

It will be appreciated that the supporting shaft 214 can be driven otherwise than by means of the motor 220 positioned adjacent the shaft rear end portion 218. For example, the support member 94 illustrated in FIGURE 3 and its counterpart 244 illustrated in FIGURES 7 and 8 can be driven by a suitable means to thereby rotate the shaft 214 and the scroll 222 secured thereto.

According to the provision of the Patent Statutes, we have explained the principle, preferred construction and mode of operation of our invention and have illustrated and described what we now consider to represent its best embodiments. However, we desire to have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise thanspecifically illustrated and described.

We claim:

1. A disintegrating head for a mining machine comprising,

an elongated cutter shaft support member having a longitudinal axis, said cutter shaft support member comprising a tubular member with slotted portions therein for passage of dislodged material from the external portion of said tubular member, through said slotted portions into the internal portion of said tubular member,

conveying means positioned within said tubular member and arranged to convey said dislodged material toward an end portion of said tubular cutter shaft support member,

a plurality of cutter shafts carried by said support member in parallel spaced relation thereto, said cutter shafts each having a longitudinal axis axially 8 spaced from said support member longitudinal axis, means to support said cutter shaft support member in a substantially horizontal position,

drive means to revolve said cutter shaft support member about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and thereby orbit said cutter shafts about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and also rotate said cutter shafts about said respective cutter shaft longitudinal axis, and

cutter bits extending radially from said cutter shafts intermediate their end portions, said cutter bits arranged to dislodge material as said disintegrating head advances into said material in a plane parallel to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis.

2. A disintegrating head for a mining machine comprising,

an elongated cutter shaft support member having a longitudinal axis,

a plurality of cutter shafts carried by said support member in parallel spaced relation thereto, said cutter shafts each having a longitudinal axis axially spaced from said support member longitudinal axis, means to support said cutter shaft support member in a substantially horizontal position,

drive means to revolve said cutter shaft support member about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and thereby orbit said cutter shafts about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and also rotate said cutter shafts about said respective cutter shaft longitudinal axis,

cutter bits extending radially from said cutter shafts intermediate their end portions, said cutter bits arranged to dislodge material as said disintegrating head advances into said material in a plane parallel to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis,

other cutter bits secured to said cutter shaft support member front end portion and to each of said cutter shaft front end portions,

said disintegrating head arranged upon rotation of said cutter shaft support member and said cutter shafts to dislodge material as said disintegrating head advances into said material in a plane substantially perpendicular to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis.

3. In a kerf cutting machine the combination comprising a mobile carriage,

a disintegrating head,

a boom connecting said disintegrating head to said mobile carriage in a manner to maintain said disintegrating head in a substantially horizontal position,

said disintegrating head including an elongated cutter shaft support member having a longitudinal axis,

a plurality of cutter shafts carried by said support member in parallel spaced relation thereto, said cutter shafts each having a longitudinal axis axially spaced from said support member longitudinal axis,

means to support said cutter shaft support member, said means connected to said boom member,

drive means to revolve said cutter shaft support member about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and thereby orbit, said cutter shafts about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and also rotate said cutter shaft about said respective cutter shaft longitudinal axis,

cutter bits extending radially from said cutter shafts intermediate their end portions, said cutter bits arranged to dislodge material as said disintegrating head advances in said material in a plane parallel to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis,

cutter bits secured to the front end portion of said support member,

other cutter bits secured to the front end of each of said cutter shafts,

said mobile carriage arranged to advance said disintegrating head, upon rotation of said cutter shaft support member and said cutter shafts into said material in a plane substantially perpendicular to the face of said material, and

said boom member arranged to move said disintegrating head in planes substantially perpendicular to the face of said material to form an annular kerf in the face of said material.

4. A disintegrating head for a mining machine comprising an elongated cutter shaft support member having a longitudinal axis,

a bearing block rotatably supporting said cutter shaft support member adjacent one end,

said bearing block mounted on a platform,

said platform arranged to maintain said elongated cutter shaft support member in a substantially horizontal position,

said elongated cutter shaft support member extending forwardly from said platform,

said elongated cutter shaft support member having a plurality of spaced bearing supports secured thereto and extending radially therefrom,

a plurality of cutter shafts extending through said bearing supports in parallel spaced relation to said elongated cutter shaft,

each of said cutter shafts having a plurality of lateral slotted portions therethrough,

cutter bits secured in said cutter shaft slotted portions,

said cutter shaft support member front end portion having cutter bits secured thereto and extending forwardly therefrom,

each of said cutter shaft front end portions having cutter bits secured thereto and extending forwardly therefrom,

said cutter shaft support member having an end portion extending rearwardly of said bearing block,

drive means connected to said cutter shaft support member rear end portion and arranged to rotate said cutter shaft support member in said bearing block,

gear means connected to each other and to said cutter shafts,

other drive means arranged to drive said gear means and rotate said cutter shafts in said bearing supports,

and conveying means associated with said cutter shaft support member and arranged to convey dislodged material axially relative to said cutter shaft support member,

said disintegrating head arranged, upon rotation of said cutter shaft support member and said cutter shafts, to dislodge material by means of said cutter bits secured to the .front end portion of said cutter shaft support member and said cutter shafts as said disintegrating head advances into said material in a plane substantially perpendicular to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and said cutter bits extending radially from said cutter shafts arranged to dislodge material as said disintegrating head advances into said material in a plane parallel to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis.

5. In a disintegrating head for a mining machine as set forth in claim 4 in which said cutter shaft rear end 10 portions each have a spur gear secured thereto and rotatable therewith,

a housing enclosing said spur gears,

said housing including an internal annular gear meshing with all of said spur gears,

and means to rotate said annular spur gear to thereby rotate each of said cutter shafts in said bearing supports.

6. In a continuous mining machine the combination comprising a mobile carriage,

a pair of disintegrating heads,

a pair of boom structures connecting said disintegrating heads to said mobile carriage in a manner to maintain said disintegrating heads in a substantially horizontal position,

said disintegrating head including an elongated cutter shaft support member having a longitudinal axis,

a plurality of cutter shafts carried by said support member in parallel spaced relation thereto, said cutter shafts each having a longitudinal axis axially spaced from said support member longitudinal axis,

means to support said cutter shaft support member, said means connected to said boom member,

drive means to revolve said cutter shaft support member about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and thereby orbit said cutter shafts about said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis and also rotate said cutter shafts about said respective cutter shaft longitudinal axis,

cutter bits extending radially from said cutter shafts intermediate their end portions, said cutter bits arranged to dislodge material as said disintegrating head advances in said material in a plane parallel to said cutter shaft support member longitudinal axis,

cutter bits secured to the front end portion of said support member,

other cutter bits secured to the front end of each of said cutter shafts,

conveying means to convey dislodged material axially relative to said cutter shaft support member,

said mobile carriage arranged to advance said disintegrating heads, upon rotation of said cutter shaft support member and said cutter shafts into said material in spaced parallel relation with each other and in a plane substantially perpendicular to the face of said material, and

said boom members arranged to move said disintegrating heads toward each other in planes substantially perpendicular to the face of said material to thereby continuously dislodge material from the face.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,084,871 1/1914 Tuck 299-87 1,962,334 6/1934 Vodoz 29955 2,886,288 5/1959 Gehrke 175173 2,920,879 1/1960 Driehaus 29987 2,986,3 5/ 1961 Densmore 299--57 3,219,390 11/1965 Conner 299-85 ERNEST R. PURSER, Primary Examiner. CHARLES E. OCONNELL, Examiner. 

2. A DISINTEGRATING HEAD FOR A MINING MACHINE COMPRISING, AN ELONGATED CUTTER SHAFT SUPPORT MEMBER HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS, A PLURALITY OF CUTTER SHAFTS CARRIED BY SAID SUPPORT MEMBER IN PARALLEL SPACED RELATION THERETO, SAID CUTTER SHAFTS EACH HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS AXIALLY SPACED FROM SAID SUPPORT MEMBER LONGITUDINAL AXIS, MEANS TO SUPPORT SAID CUTTER SHAFT SUPPORT MEMBER IN A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL POSITION, DRIVE MEANS TO REVOLVE SAID CUTTER SHAFT SUPPORT MEMBER ABOUT SAID CUTTER SHAFT SUPPORT MEMBER LONGITUDINAL AXIS AND THEREBY ORBIT SAID CUTTER SHAFTS ABOUT SAID CUTTER SHAFT SUPPORT MEMBER LONGITUDINAL AXIS AND ALSO ROTATE SAID CUTTER SHAFTS ABOUT SAID RESPECTIVE CUTTER SHAFT LONGITUDINAL AXIS, 